Commex Sri Lanka S.R.L., a fully-owned subsidiary of the Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC launched money transfer operations in Italy, following the grant of a Money Transfer Licence from the Bank of Italy.
Commex Sri Lanka S.R.L. of Via Giacomo Leopardi, Rome, incorporated and registered in Italy under the supervision of the Bank of Italy, received the necessary regulatory approvals from both countries to engage in fund transfers on its own from a market that generates an estimated Rs. 3 billion in remittances to Sri Lanka per month.
The Commercial Bank is one of the first Sri Lankan banks to open a company in Italy for money transfer operations.
“We are delighted to launch the Commex operation as a fully-owned Sri Lankan Exchange House offering money transfer facilities,” Commercial Bank’s Managing Director/CEO, Jegan Durairatnam said.
“The company was incorporated for that purpose, recognising the potential in Italy for remittance services to Sri Lanka.”
He said the Bank hopes to open branches in other Italian cities with high potential for money transfer services to Sri Lanka. The monthly value of fund inflows to the country from Italy is about Rs. 3 billion, the Bank said.
Commercial Bank has also tied up with international money transfer services Ria and MoneyGram offering Sri Lankan expatriates additional ways of remitting their earnings to Sri Lanka, supplementing the services already offered through its own money transfer product, e Exchange. The tie up with MoneyGram and Ria permits remittances to all parts of the world through Commex.